Automatic radio station selector



Oct. 29, 1935. w R1 5 51- AL 2,019,157

- AUTOMATIC RADIO STATION SELECTOR Filed June 24. 1933 3 Sheets-Sheet lG 7 I 23 Q 21 H H. ll-t q Oct. 29, 1935.

w. RICE ET AL 2,019,157

AUTOMATIC RADIO STATION SELECTOR Filed June 24, 1933 3- sheets -sheet 235 ,Zg -Q 25.10. Z5 j1 f 7 g 28 25 )fjzbeziazi's dzztarflafc ce A Jig V,mrwaaw Oct. 29, 1935. w. RICE El AL AUTOMATIC RADIO STATION SELECTORFiled June 24, 1953 3 Sheets-Sheet IS Cl 06K (25d? 19 )5 l g TT. TT

Home on. 29, 1935 PATENT OFFIC 8.010.151 sn'roess'nc nsmo sdwnos smc'roaZWilliarn Rice and Maurice ll. Goldberg, Chicago,

v 111.; said Goldberg assignor to said lice Application Jane 24, 10:3,sci-1n No. 011.41} 3 Claims. (01. 250-201 'nm invention relatesgenerally to radio reeeiving apparatus, and more particularlytoselectivecontrol mechanism for the same.

'nmrehave-been a number of proposals, in the I, out. to provide amechanism for automatically tuniia radio receiving circuits at timedintervals. but such mechanism have not proved satisi'ectory for variousreasons. The objections to devices of this typein the past have beenthat 0 they all reliedupon the'variable radio condenser for varying thestations selected thereby, the mechanism devised being merely some meansfor moving said radio condenser to a predetermined point at apredetermined time. I

This means not only made ior'a somewhat complicated and expensivemechanism, but also failed to accurately tune in the selected station asanyone familiar with radio receiving apparatus know how impossible it isto properly tune in a dmired radio circuit by merely moving thecondenser thereoi to a predetermined fixed position. Asa consequence,none at these prior devices proved commercially practical. The presentinvention is a distinct departure it from the prior art proposals inthat it combines simple adiustable tuning elements which may be set atpredetermined values with simple means for selectively tuning inp'redetermining broadcasting stationsat predetermined time intervals bythe mere movement of simple mechanism, such. for example, as a simpleswitch or the like. It is, therefore. one of the main objects oi thisinvention to provide an improved mechanism which may be selectably setmanually, whereby B automaticalb various stations may be tuned inperiodically and the radio instrument set into operation.

Another obiecto! this invention is to provide a of the'above mentionedtype having timing means .seleetably responsive to simple switchingmechanism associated therewith.

A flirther object of this invention is to provide a mechanism of theabove mentioned type in which simple switching mechanism are employedfor selectably tuning in predetermined broadcasting stations andautomatic time con-- troi means for actuating said switching mechonion.

0 A still further object of this invention is to provide a plurality oi.tuning elements for selectablytuninginpredetcrminedradioreceivingcincults by tbermovement 01' simple mechanism and time controlled meansassociated therewith for s periodicalb changing from one to the other ofsaid tuning elements, whereby diflerent stations may be periodicallyselected thereby.

A still further object oi this invention is to provide time controlledmeans ior controlling the actuation of switching mechanism which are aassociated with radio tuning elements to bring the latter into servicefor selectably tuning in predetermined broadcasting stations.

A still further" object 0! this invention is to provide in combinationwith a radio reoeiving cir- 1o cuit including a plurality of tuningelements which are selectably responsive to simple switching mechanism,time controlled means operable to selectably actuate said switchingmechanism, whereby the receiving circuit will be tuned to 15 apredetermined station, and to periodically change the switchingmechanism alter a predetermined interval of time and to break the supplyof power to the circuit at a predetermined time. 90 A still furtherobject of this invention is to provide a mechanism" or the characterdescribed applicable to radio receivers as at present canmonly used.whereby the variable condenser 01suchredioreceiversmaybereadilythrownoutil 01 service and supplemented byother tuning means selectably responsive to simple switchim mechanism,which mechanism may be selectively and individually set to function toautomatically tune in various stations at timed intervals. 80

A still iurther object of this invention is to provide a device of theabove mentioned character which embodies not only manually andselectively set means for automatically tuning a radio receiver to bringin various broadcasting 88 stations at predetermined desired times. butwhich also automatically stops or cuts oil Iran operation the receiversubsequent to the completion of certain predetermined programs. theautomatically stop means being also manually and selectively set forsuch operation, said automatic tuning means being independent of theusual variable tuning elements at-preeent commonly used on radioreceivers.

A still further object of this invention is to pro- .vide a mechanism ofthe character described which will be simple in construction. assemblyand operation, which may be produced along lines convenient for low costmanufacture and whichwillbehighly eiilcienti'orcarryingoutthe purposesfor which it is designed.

with the foregoing and other objects in view. which will appear as thedescription proceeds, the invention consists in certain novel featuresof construction. arrangement and oombinations 68 of parts hereinaftermore fully described, illustrated in the accompanyin drawings. andparticularly pointed out in the appended claims, itbeinguaderstoodthatvarlouschangesinthe form, proportion, size and minordetails of the structure may be made without departing from the spiritor sacrificing any of the advantages of the invention.

For the purpose of facilitating an understanding of our invention, wehave illustrated in the accompanying drawings a preferred embodimentthereof, from an inspection of which when considered in connection withthe following description. our invention, its mode of construction, as-

sembly and operation, and many of itsadvantagesshouldbereadllyunderstoodandappreciated.

Referring 'to the drawings in which the same characters of reference areemployed to indicate corresponding or similar throughout the severalfigures of the drawings:

Figure iisafrontelevationalviewofapanel board with mechanism embodyingthe present invention supported thereby;

Fig.2isabottomplanviewofthemechanlsm shown in Fig. l; V

3 is a bottom plan view of the selector 41sanenlargedfragmentaryviewofthe opposite side of the drum shown in Fig.3, parts thereof being broken away to show the inside constructionthereof;

Fig. 5 is a view in elevation of one of the selector elements;

Fig. Bisaview taken on lined-l of Fig.5 showing the selector element inone of its operative positions;

1 'lgs.'1,8,9, 10, and iiareviewssimilarto Fig. 6, but showing theselector element in the other of its operative positions;

Fig. 12 is an elevational view partly in section showing the manual foractuating the selector elements; and

Fig. 13 lsa diagrammatic view of the electric circuit employed.

Stated generally, the invention involves the provision of a plurality ofsimple adjustable tuning elements, the values of which may be set tobring in predetermined broadcasting stations, said tuning, elementsbeing capable of being brought into operation by the closing of a simpleswitching mechanism. These adjustable tuning elements are provided inaddition to the variable tuning units as at present commonly used inradio receivers.

For the purpose of automatically actuating said switching mechanism,there is provided a time controlled mechanism, including a plurality ofselector elements, each of which is adapted to be moved to a pluralityof adjusted positions, said positions being arranged so as to bringabout either one of a plurality of desired operations.

'When in one position each of said selector elecarried by said panel area plurality of simple adjustable condensers II, It, I3, and il which arecontrolled by the switches II, II, It, and II, respectively. The saidswitches may be of any suitable and well known construction, and, as 41illustrated in the drawings, are carried in blocks 2| which are securedto the bracket 22, said bracket also supporting intermediate its endssuitable bus bars 23 which are connected in circuit with the condensersllto ll. Thus the simm ple movement of the switching elements ll to IIwill close the circuit through predetermined sets of the adjustablecondensers II to It. Suitable conductors 2! connect the condensers II toM with their co-operating switching elements i1 i:, to II.

In order to actuate said switching elements automatically and also attimed intervals the following. improved mechanism is provided.

' Mounted on the panel II for rotary movement 3 thereon is a selectordrum, generally designated by the reference character 25, said drumbeing formedofapairofdisksfl and 21 rigidlysecured to each otherinspaced relation in any suitable manner. Adjacent the outer periphery.5 of the drum are mounted a plurality of selector elements 28, therebeing forty-eight of such elements equally spaced apart to permit forthe predetermined setting of' the device for a complete twenty-four hourperiod at half hour intervals. 30 Each of the selector elements 2| isprovided with a circular portion 2! adjacent one end thereof which isreceived in a suitable opening provided therefor in the disk 2 and areduced circular portion it provided at its opposite end for 3:reception in an opening provided therefor in the other disk 11. Theseportions 2! and ill thus form suitable bearings for the selectorelements II, whereby the same may be rotated relative to said drum.Intermediate theportions 2t and II 40 the selector elements are of ahexagonal cross section as shown in the drawings, and are provided witha plurality of transverse grooves ll, said grooves being arranged inonset relation and there being a total of six of said grooves in each ofsaid selector elements. Thus by rotating the selector elements in amanner to be hereinafter more fully described, the desired groove II ofany selector element may be brought to any one of the six positionsshown in Figs. 8 to 11. so Each of the selector elements is providedwith a specially shaped head 32 which is shown to be triangular, saidhead being adapted for reception in a similarly shaped socket forimparting the duired rotary movement to the selector elements on Inorder to keep the said selector elements in the desired adjustedpositions to which they may be moved, there is provided a fiat annularspring 33, shown in Fig. 4, said spring normally pressing against theinner sides of said elements for holdon ing the same in the positions towhich they may have been moved. The resiliency of the spring 33,however, permits the ready turning of said elements when actuated by theactuating member to be presently more fully described. as The selectordrum II is mounted for rotary movement in a vertical plane, as shown inFig. 1, and for that purpose it is disposed on a suitable sleeve 84carried by the panel '0. Intermittent half hour rotary movement isimparted to the selector drum by means of a pawl II carried on the outerend of a lever 36, said lever being pivoted intermediate its ends to thesleeve it and has its opposite and disposed in position to be actuatedby a double acting'cam 31 which is con- 1| nected with a suitable clock88 mpported on the panel by means 01' the bracket a. said cam 31 beingconnected with thsblock mechanismsoastomakeoneiullrevolutionevery hour.The clock Il may be oi any suitable construction and may be eitherspring wound or electrically driven. If an electric clock is used thesame may be oi the well known synchronous motor type and may be includedin the circuit, as

wshowninFig.l3,sothatthesamemaybeinconstant operation as long as thehouse current to which it is connected is uninterrupted.

The pawl ll isadapted to co-operate with suitable ratchet teeth 4.provided on the disk 21 of the selector drum. A spring ll normally urgessaid pawl into engagement with said ratchet teeth. I! desired, theratchet'teeth ll may be eliminatedand the pawl ll arranged to operatewith the projections ll of the selector elements ll,- which projections,it will be noted, extend a substantial distance beyond the outer surfaceof the disk 21, as more clearly shown in Pig. 5 of the drawings.

Asshowninl'ig.1,onearmottheleverflis disposed in the path of movement ofthe cam I! while the other arm thereof is yieldably urged in a clockwisedirection by means of the coil spring 2-, which spring will also beelective for holding the lever in contact with the cam 31. From theabove it should be apparent that the cam I1. because its rotary movementimparted to it by the clock 88, will actuate the lever ll to move thesame in a counter clockwise direction asainst the action or the spring42.

When the lever has passed the highest pointonthecamlhthespringflwillmovethelever and pawl to rotate the selectordrum 2| in a clockwise direction through an angle equal to the anglebetween any two selector elements II or' one-iorty-eighth of arevolution. A stop member I is provided for preventing greatermovementthanthatoitheselectordrum. The'selectordrumilwillthusbeadvencedapredetermined distance every halthour, this movement being entirely automatic and controlled by the clockmechanism ll.

As already explained, each of the selector elements II is adapted tordisposition in either one of six positions to which it may be moved. Inorder to move a desired selector element to a predetermined position, wehave provided the following improved mechanism. A lever ll having apointer 4! provided at one end is pivotally mounted intermediate itsends on a shaft ll, whichshaitisadaptedtobereceivedinthesleeve 84 forrotation therein.

On one face-oi the selector drum are provided suitable designationsindicated by the reference character ll, said designations designatingthe selector elements by numbers from 1 A. M. to 12 noon. and from i P.M. to 12 midnight. The pointer is so mounted as to co-operate with saidn'flhers, whereby the disposition of the pointer opposite a designatedtime number will permit the setting of the desired selector element tothe desired position for that will time interval.

The end oi the lever 45 disposed opposite that o! the pointer isprovided with an enlarged portion II in which is slldably mounted ashaft ll t0 the'bottom end of which is secured'a socket bl adapted forreceiving the triangular shaped head ll of the selector elements 28. Asuitable disk I! issecuredtotbeupperiaceoitheenlarged portion ll in anysuitable manner, such. for example, as by means of the screws 53.

Disposed above the disk 52 and in spaced relation thereto is a handdial54, said dial being' rigidly keyed to the upper end oi the shaft SI for5 imparting rotary movement thereto. A coil spring I! is interposedbetween the disk I! and dial 54, said spring surrounding said shaft andnormally holding the latter in its uppermost position, as shown in Fig.12. A suitable shoulder ll is provided on the shaft I0 intermediate itsends for limiting its upward movement. A cut-out l1 7 is provided on theperiphery of the dial it through which cut-out may be observed certaindesignations 52' provided on the disk I! for racili- 1g tating in thesetting of the selector elements to the desired positions.

As shown more clearly in Fig. 2. the normal position of the socket llwill be out of engagement with the selector drum 4!. However, when it isgo desired to set the selector drum so as to bring in a certainbroadcasting station at a predetermined time, the lever arm ii is movedto a position where the pointer 48 thereof will be disposed opposite thedesignated time. The shaft ll may go then be depressed to bring thesocket 5i into engagement with the head of the selector element disposeddirectly below it.

The hand dial l4 may then be rotated to bring the said selector elementto the desired position, said position being indicated by the markingsor designations on the disk 52. As there are only six positions to whichany selector element may be moved. the markings on the disk 52 will,therefore, beirom l to 6. By thus observing the markas ings of'the disk'2 through the cut-out ll of the hand dial, the particular selectorelement being actuated may be moved to the desired position as noted bythe indication on the disk II.

In order to lock the drum 2' against move- 40 ment when the selectorelements are being setby thehand dial 84, there is provided a suitablebraking mechanism which, in the embodiment illustrated, comprise a leverll pivoted at one end to a the panel ll, as shown at N. and having itsop- 46 posits end disposed in position to engage the selector drum 2!when moved to such position by anarmll,whicharmisdisposedagainst theunderside oi the lever 58 and is adapted when moved about its pivot iito urge said lever ll against the 60 drum, and when moved in theopposite direction to permit the lever I. to move out of engagement withsaid drum. A flat spring 62 having one end thereof secured to the panelII is provided for cooperating with the arm for holding the latter II inoi oi two adjusted positions. A stop member 08 may be provided forlimiting the movement or the arm I in one direction. 7

As hereinbeiore mentioned the selector elements are employed foractuating the switching 00 elements I! to 20 at predetermined timeintervals to bring about the desired operation of the device during thattime interval. Those disposed directly below the selector drum II are aplurality of levers I, b, "I, 8!, i9, and It, said levers I beingpivoted intermediate their ends on a stud 'l I, which stud is secured tothe panel III as shown at 12 in Fig. l. The said levers 65 to is aremounted so that their longest and heavier ends are on the right 0! theirpivot I I, as viewed in Fig.

1, whereby they will by their own weight be urged in a clockwisedirection at all times.

Each oi the levers N to so is provided adjacent the end disposedopposite the drum 20 with a pro-. iecting portion 13, which portion isadapted to be II received in the groove ll or the selector elementdisposed directly above it when said element is in a position where one01' the grooves ll thereof is is, which toes are adapted to engage theircooperating switching elements for moving the some out or. contactingengagement with the bus bars II. v

The lever II is provided adjacent one end with a depending portion II,which portion is adapted to engage the movable contact ll 01' a switch"IO-ll. the other contact ll of which isilxed.

The switch ls-J1 is in the main line connecting the 110 volt housecurrent with the radio receiver. The contact I! is so arranged that whenthe depending portion II is in a down position, that is, when itsportion I3 is out of engagement with the groove ll of the selectorelement disposed directly above it, the circuit to the radio receiverwill be closed and the receiver capable 0! operation. However, when theprojection II oi the lever II is disposed in the groove Ii 01' theselector element directly above it, it will permit the opening or theswitch It-T1, thus cutting oil the power to the radio receiver andshutting oi! the same. The lever Ill, therefore, is employed for thepurpose of maintaining the circuit to the receiver closed when theselector element directly above it is in any one of its tlve positionsof the six positions to which it may be moved and to break. said circuitwhen said selector element is in its last of its said six positions.

One of the other levers O5 to N. say, for example, the lever is arrangedso that when its projecting portion 13 is in the groove ll of theselector element and directly above it, it will permit the actuation oia switch element II, to cut in the usual tuning elements I. and 80,whereby the radio receiver may be tuned in the ordinary manner. when inthis position it will be apparent that the other switches ii to II willbe open by reason of their engagement by their respective levers II toII, thus cutting out from the circuit the simple adjustable condensersii to II, thereby Permitting the ordinary operation of the receiver fortuning the same in the usual manner to bring in desired broadcastingstations by actuating the. variable condensers II and II.

It will also be'noted that at this time the switch IO-11 will be in aclosed position, thereby closing the circuit to the radio receiver.

When one or the other levers it to I are disposed in a position with theprojection 13 thereoi disposed in the groove II of the selector elementdirectly above it, one of the switch elements l'l to II, which isdisposed opposite the toe ll of that particular lever, will be permittedto make contact with the bus bars 23, thus completing the circuitthrough the respective adjustable condemers Ii to N, thereby bringing ina particular station to which the particular condenser has been.previously tuned.

From the above it will be readily apparent thateacholtheseleotorelementsmaybesetinone aoiaisv otsixpoaitimis forco-operating'with one of the levers II to II for bringing about a'desired operation ot'the radio receiver; Thuswhen in one position itwill permit the swinging oi the-lever I. to bring about the opening oftheswitch ll-l1 for completely; shuttingoi! the radio-receiver.

When in another position itawill permit the swinging o! the lever so topermit the actuation of the switch 18 for cutting out the condensers IIto I4 and for cutting in the variable con- 1 densers II and 80 forpermitting the usual operation of the radio receiver. when in one or theremaining four positions the selector element will co-operate withone oithe remaining levers to permit the closing or the circuit automatically1: through one oi. the condensers to 14, thus bringing in s particularbroadcasting station tor which the particular condenser, has been pre--viously set.

' In theuse or our invention thesimple adjust g4 able condensers II toare set in the desiredpositions to correspond to the station that theparticular condenser is to tune in, that is to say, the condenser ll maybe set to tune instation WBBM, the condenser II to tune in station aWGN. the to tune in station KYW and the condenser ll to tune in station-WM.AQ. Although four such adjustable condensers are illustrated in thedrawings, it is understood-that a lesser or greater number of saidsimple ada justable condensers may be employed with equally satisfactoryresults. Thus the selector elements may be octagon in cross section,thereby permitting its disposition in eight instead or six diiierentpositions, in which case a plurality oi a six semi-fixed condensersmaybe employed for bringing in automatically six broadcasting stationsby the mere closing of simple switching The condensers ii to it maybe orany type 4 suitable for this purpose. and in the preferred embodiment,these may be'o! what is known as the semi-fixed type and arecharacterized by the tact that the value or the condenser may be ad-viusted in a very simple'manner, such, ior-ex- 4 ample, as by the simplemanipulation ot a screw or the like. a y a The operationoi thedevlceshould be readily apparent from the above without 'iurtherdescription. As already stated, the purpose of the 5 device is tomanually set the same for a complete twenty-tour hour period and then toper mit it to automatically operate the receiver either to tune incertaindesired broadcasting stations or to shut oi! the receiver or toplace the receiver 5 in condition to permit its ordinary operation, alloi this being accomplished without further attention until the order isto be changed.

As an example oi-the operation'oi' the device. assuming the pointer is.to be in .the position 9 shown in Fig. 1,, lnwhich position it will benoted it is disposed opposite the selector element be tween the. timesas indicated on the'drum 12 noon and l P. M. or 12:30 P.1d. with thepointer in this position the actuation of the hand dial I to move theselector elementdisposed directly below it will set this selectorelement to the de-v sired position tor the hall hour interval beginningwith 12:30 P. M. The position to which the par- 1 ticular. selectorelement is to be moved may be observed on the disk I2 bynoting thenumbers. I thereon. Thus as shown in Fig. i, the deslg- I nation on thedisk I2 visible through the cut-out,

in the hand dial. is the number 1, which-number. I

may correspond to the position of the selector element shown in fulllines in Fig. 6.

Now assuming that when in that position the groove 3| of said selectorelement which will be exposed for reception therein of the projection 13of the lever 85, which lever will then be permitted to swing about itspivot for releasing the switch element H to close a circuit to thesemiiixed condenser ii for bringing in broadcasting station WBBM. When,therefore, the time of 12:30 P. M. has arrived the particular selectorelement will be disposed at the lowermost point of the selector drum andwill be in -the position to permit the swinging of the lever 85 aboutits pivot to bring about the closing of a circuit through the condenserII and at that time station WBBM will be heard from.

This particular station will be tuned in for the entire half hour periodat the end of which a further rotary movement will be made by theselector drum bringing into operative position the next successiveselector element which will be efl'ective for permitting the swinging ofone of the levers 66 to III to bring about the desired operation of thereceiver for the next half hour period. Particular attention is directedto the fact that the device is capable of not cnly tuning inautomatically desired broadcasting stations, but also of completelyshutting oi! the receiver at predetermined timesand for predeterminedperiods of time.

From the foregoing it will readily be seen that the present inventionprovides a novel and improved structure which may readily accomplish thevarious objects for which it has been designed. It will be understoodthat the invention is not confined to the specific structural detailsherein shown and described, and that numerous .changes and modificationsand the further use of equivalents of the present invention may beresorted to without departing from the spirit or scope of the inventionas outlined in the appended claims.

Having now described our invention in the manner in which the sameoperates, what we claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. In a device for automatically conditioning a radio receiving set toreceive radio waves from selected broadcasting stations, said receivingset having a plurality of semi-fixed tuning elements, switchingmechanism to which said tuning elements are selectably responsive, arotatable selector drum having a plurality of equally spacedcircumferentially disposed selector elements for selectably actuatingsaid switching mechanism,

means for intermittently rotating said drum to bring each selectorelement to a stationary position at the same point and to retain saiddrum in said stationary position for a predetermined time interval,means provided on each of said selector elements including a pluralityof cam surfaces for co-operation with the actuating means for saidswitch mechanism whereby said selector elements may be set to bringabout the desired operation of a predetermined part of said switchingmechanism to bring in a predetermined broadcasting station.

2. In combination with a radio receiving set having a plurality ofsemi-fixed tuning elements, switching mechanism to which said tuningelements are selectably responsive, means for selectably actuating saidswitching mechanism to successively select different impulses to bereceived, said last mentioned means including an intermittently rotatingdrum upon the periphery of which are provided a plurality of equallyspaced selector elements each of said selector elements being providedwith a plurality of cam surfaces arranged on the periphery thereof inoifset relation to each other, each of said cam surfaces being arrangedfor co-operation with said switching mechanism to bring in apredetermined broadcasting station, means for rotating said drum tobring each selector element to a stationary position and to retain thesame in said position for a predetermined time interval, and means foractuating each of said selector elements to bring the desired camsurfaces thereof into operative position with relation to the switchingmechanism.

3. In combination with a radio receiving set, a plurality of tuningelements provided therefor, simple switching mechanism to which saidtuning elements are responsive, means actuating said switchingmechanism, said last mentioned means including a rotatable drum, timecontrolled means for intermittently rotating said drum, selectorelements circumferentially disposed upon the periphery of said drum,said selector elements being mounted for rotary movement relative tosaid drum, each of said selector elements being provided with aplurality of cam surfaces arranged in oflset relation to each other, andmeans for actuating said selector elements to bring the desired camsurface thereon into operative position, whereby said selector elementsmay be set to bring about the desired operation of a predetermined partof said switching mechanism to bring in a predetermined broadcastingstation.

WDLLIAM RICE. MAURICE H. GOLDBERG.

